


The Timewarp, Again.

by unoriginal_liz



Category: Famous Five - Enid Blyton
Genre: Gen
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2010-05-20
Updated: 2010-05-20
Packaged: 2018-03-31 11:15:54
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 847
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3976042
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/unoriginal_liz/pseuds/unoriginal_liz
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>“Julian – Ju,” Anne said slowly, “Don’t you think we might be getting too old for adventures?”</p>
            </blockquote>





	The Timewarp, Again.

**Author's Note:**

> Written for a prompt given by youcallitwinter on livejournal. I think the Five DO age somewhat in the series (I might be wrong?) but if they do, that's...even creepier, really.

By the third day, Anne knew what to expect. So it wasn’t quite so frightening when she heard the heavy footsteps on the stairs and the attic door swung open, and the big man appeared with the tray in his hands. He set it down just inside the door, and pushed it in their direction, before shutting the door again and locking it.

Julian refused to eat until she had eaten first. Just like he had yesterday, and the day before that. So she nibbled some cheese and a piece of hard bread, and drank a little water, which didn’t taste very nice. Nothing like the clear, cold water from the stream they had been camping near before they had been captured.

When they were done, they left the tray by the attic door, and sat with their backs against the wall. The room was so very small and cramped that really there was nothing else to do. The ceiling sloped, and beams criss-crossed above their heads, so they couldn’t even stand, or walk around. Maybe a few years ago, it wouldn’t have been so bad, Anne thought, though Julian always had been tall for his age, but now…

“Julian?” she said, a little timidly.

“Yes, Anne?”

She looked at her lap. It wasn’t that she thought Julian would be unkind, only…well, she wasn’t quite sure if she should say what she wanted to. The question made her feel rather shy and silly. But it was also hard not to ask. The words had a way of rising up in her throat at the strangest times, and it was getting harder and harder to swallow them down.

“Come on, Anne. Spit it out,” Julian said. He smiled ruefully and said, “Whatever you’ve got to say can’t make things worse than they are right now.”

“Julian – Ju,” Anne said slowly, “Don’t you think we might be getting too old for adventures?”

He laughed a little in surprise, then rubbed her shoulder in sympathy. “Poor old Anne – this isn’t your idea of a good time, is it? But don’t worry – I promise, it’ll turn out all right in the end. We’ve got Dick and George on the trail, remember?”

“I know,” Anne said. “But – that wasn’t what I meant.”

She felt a little miserable because she was sure she wouldn’t explain it right. Actually, it felt like she oughtn’t to explain at all – it felt in a strange way like she was telling a secret. “What I mean is, Mother and Father – and Aunt Fanny and Uncle Quentin… _they_ don’t seem to have adventures – at least, not like the adventures we have. It's just, we’re almost gr” –

“What a strange thing to say – when we’re right in the middle of an adventure,” Julian interrupted. “Don’t you think this is an adventure, Anne?”

“No, I know it is,” she said. “Only…we can’t go on like this forever – can we?”

Julian looked at her. He shook his head in puzzlement. “I don’t know what you mean.”

The way he was speaking made her feel stupid and slow – which was odd, because Julian was usually kind and patient if she didn’t understand something. She supposed it must be a ridiculous question to ask. George had gotten cross when she had tried to talk to her about it, too.

Maybe Anne was the only one who felt it – the sensation of being squeezed, like she was trying to fit into clothes that were several sizes too small.

She tried to clear her head and concentrate, because Julian was speaking now.

“ – simply can’t wait much longer. So, tomorrow, when Our Friend brings up the food, I’ll try to catch him off guard. If I wait just inside the door” –

“Oh no! No, no, Julian, you can’t!” Anne begged, suddenly cold with terror. “What if he hurts you?”

“He’ll have the tray in his hands, and he won’t be expecting an attack,” Julian said patiently. “I know it isn’t very nice, Anne, but if Dick and George don’t figure out those clues we left – we’ll have to do something ourselves.”

“I know,” Anne said, wretchedly, “Only – can’t we wait a little longer? I’m sure Dick and George will come soon. I know I’m not as brave as you, Ju – I know you’re not afraid of anything, but” –

Something in Julian’s face changed, and she stopped speaking. In a strange voice, he said, “Being brave isn’t about _not_ being afraid, Anne. Being brave is about…facing up to the things that scare you most. Even when you don’t want to. And you’re a regular lion.”

Anne looked at him.

“One more day,” Julian said. “We can give them one more day.”

She nodded, relieved.

Later, as they lay down, Anne found their cramped quarters almost reassuring. It was hard to be frightened with her brother so close that she could reach out and touch him.

As she stared up, hoping no spiders would make their way down from the wooden beams, she made up her mind that she would be brave tomorrow.

Like Julian.


End file.
